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Christian Biblical Principles for Dealing with Depression teaches you how to manage depression or depressing situations using Biblical principles drawn from people in the Bible who were depressed such as Elijah and those who were in depressing situations such as Naomi when she returned home after having buried her husband and all her sons.
BOOK EXCERPT
When Paul was in a depressing situation because he was troubled on every side, perplexed, persecuted and cast down we can see that he counted his blessings for he said,
“Though we are troubled on every side, we are not distressed.
Though we are perplexed, we are not in despair.
Though we are persecuted, we are not forgotten.
Though we are cast down, we are not destroyed.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)
These blessings that he counted were:
1. He was not distressed (even though he was troubled on every side)
2. He was not desperate (even though he was perplexed)
3. He was not forgotten (even though he was persecuted)
4. He was not destroyed (even though he was cast down)
Therefore, when dealing with depression, learn to sift through your problems and pick all the blessings that may be mixed with the hassles. Pick up each blessing however tiny it may be and magnify it by raising it up to God as you praise Him and thank Him for it in prayer.
Do this each day and develop not just an attitude of gratitude but a habit of gratitude and this habit will be the life jacket that will prevent you from drowning in the despair of depression.
Therefore, count your blessings and see what God has done as it is a very effective way of dealing with depression.
Learn from Paul and realize that if he had just counted his problems and said:
1. I am troubled on every side
2. I am perplexed
3. I am persecuted
4. I am cast down
these statements and their accompanying thoughts could have depressed his feelings.
But, by attaching blessings to his hassles, and saying,
“Though I am troubled on every side, I am not distressed.
Though I am perplexed, I am not in despair.
Though I am persecuted, I am not forgotten.
Though I am cast down, I am not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)
he took the edge off the negativity and the resultant statement and accompanying thoughts were less depressing.
Therefore, learn to look for blessings in the midst of depressing situations and thank God for them however minute they may be. If you can’t find any positives, thank Him that the negatives are not worse than they already are.
If you can’t think of any positive thing in your present situation to thank Him for, thank God for all the good things that He has done for you in the past.
A perfect example is when Jeremiah was depressed and he lamented that his soul had sunk within him, (Lamentations 3:20) we can see that he un-sunk his soul from the pit of depression by reminding himself of God’s goodness for he said, “What I remind myself so that I can have hope is that ‘Through God’s mercies we are not consumed by our enemies for He is faithful and He renews His compassion towards us every morning.’” (Lamentations 4:21-23)
A simple prayer that you can pray in order to maximize your blessings and minimize your depressing problems and thereby modify your mood is:
“Heavenly Father,
I thank you that even though I have many problems, I am not devastated.
I thank you that even though I have many enemies, I am not destroyed.
I thank you that even though I am unemployed, I am not destitute.
I thank you that even though I am depressed, I am not deranged.
I thank you that even though I am distressed, I am not diseased.
I thank you that even though I am diseased, I am not dead.
Buy the PDF version of Christian Biblical Principles for Dealing with Depression by Dr Miriam Kinai
